This relates generally to three-dimensional (3D) aerial images.
Three-dimensional aerial images are 3D images that appear to float in space. The user can interact and can even manipulate such images. The user can also put his hand through the image.
There are a variety of uses of 3D aerial displays including entertainment, hands-free control, and the enhanced ability to view and manipulate 3D models.
One technique for generating 3D aerial displays is to use a swept volume technique. In swept volume displays, a moving surface acts as a display screen for a scanning laser or a projection system.
One swept volume display technique is a rotating helicoid. An image may be projected onto the axis of a rotating helicoid and that image can be viewed on the surface of the helicoid in a direction transverse to the axis of rotation of the helicoid. However, high volume manufacturing of helicoid shapes is a daunting prospect because it is very difficult to manufacture such a shape other than by manual techniques. Because of the complexity of the shape, conventional molding techniques do not work.
Another issue with helicoid swept volume displays is that the projected image gets shadowed by the central axis of the display. Therefore blank spots appear in the display itself.